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Sunday, February 2, 2014

As
the winter vacations of the children loomed large, this time around I was
perplexed about the destination I would take them to. During the previous years, I had ceremonially
proceeded to hill stations, so as to enable them to watch snowfall, but without
success. However, during this year they
happened to witness snowfall during the peak of summer, on the day we visited
Tso Moriri Lake in Ladakh and therefore, there was no point in going again for
a holiday to a hill station. Since
Rajasthan was an area that had not been toured by me, especially because of
having had some bad experiences with the tourism industry related people of the
State. Thus, because of my interest in
bird-watching, of the ‘Avian’ kind of-course, I choose to visit Bharatpur this
year. Bharatpur
is also called the Eastern gateway of Rajasthan. The history of Bharatpur dates
back to the epic age, when the Matsya Kingdom flourished here in the 5th century
B.C. The matsya’s were the allies of the Pandavas during the Mahabharata war.
According to tradition the name of Bharatpur is traced to Bharat, the brother
of Lord Rama of Ayodhya, who’s other brother Laxman was granted the esteemed place
as family deity of the ruling family of Bharatpur. His name also appears in the
state seals and coat-of-arms.

A Yellow Wagtail on the Yamuna Expressway

Hotel Saras, Bharatpur

Bharatpur
is famous for its bird sanctuary that goes by the name of ‘Keoladeo Ghana
National Park’.The nearest city to this
township is Agra that is situated at a distance of 54 Kms. and Jaipur is about
174 Kms. from here, it is also accessible from Alwar at a distance of 117 Kms.
and Delhi, which is about 182 Kms. from here.Bharatpur is also accessible by train, as it lies on the Western
Railways Mumbai-Delhi Sector and about fours hours run from Delhi.There are a plethora of private hotels that
operate in this township and apart from them there is Rajasthan Tourism
Development Corporation run hotel ‘Saras’ of ‘comfort category’ but very basic
nature and I had stayed here in AC Rooms, but the fooding is not upto the
mark.For those looking for more
luxurious environs, there is hotel Ashok, Bharatpur an ITDC run hotel right
inside the National Park precincts.

Main entry gate of Keloadeo Ghana National Park, Bharatpur

Spotted Owlet in Bharatpur bird sanctuary

Indian Roller on its perch in Bharatpur sanctuary

Sambhar deer (female) in Bharatpur sanctuary

Chital or spotted deer (female) in Bharatpur sanctuary

Wild boar in Bharatpur sanctuary

Chital or spotted deer (Male) in Bharatpur sanctuary

Kingfisher in Bharatpur sanctuary

Eurasian Coot in Bharatpur sanctuary

We
started for our sojourn to Bharatpur at around 8.00 A.M from Delhi on the 4th of January, 2014 and we
decided to access the Yamuna Expressway, as the National Highway passing
through Gurgaon was bound to be jam packed during the morning hours. The decision appeared to be well taken, as we
started from Dwarka and had reached Nehru Place in about 40 minutes and having
gone past the Okhla Bird Sanctuary we reached the Yamuna Expressway. This was the first time for me on this road
and I found the road to be astounding, maintaining international standards and
a dream to ride on. As we were not aware
as to whether we would get anything to eat on this highway or not, since it
would not have the ordinary range of ‘Dhabas’ (local restaurants) alongside. We stopped on the way, parking our vehicle on
the side and had our breakfast of grilled sandwiches and Coffee that had been
prepared by my better half. Thereafter,
we proceeded towards Mathura and having paid a toll fee of Rs.220/-, we exited
the expressway at Mathura after a drive of little over two hours. Our dream journey had come to an abrupt end
and nightmare started as soon as we exited the express way and entered Mathura,
it took us one full hour to cross this township, full of jams and slow moving
traffic. We exited Mathura at National
Highway and having crossed over, drove towards Rajashtan and found that the
road here was much better, as we headed for Bharatpur.

We
reached Bharatpur at around 12.30 P.M and after having completed the check in
formalities at Hotel Saras, we occupied our rooms to relax and refresh
ourselves. We thereafter, took lunch at
the hotel and as the occupancy was low the staff informed that instead of
A-la-carte, they would provide ‘Thali’ (Plate comprising of Cereals, Lentils and
Vegetables etc.) @ Rs.175/- per plate, but we did not find the food very
palatable, as it was bland. It was
overcast outside, but we still decided to head for the famed ‘Keoladeo National
Park’, which is a famed bird sanctuary.
The Park gate is about 300 meters from the Hotel gate and as we were
unaware of the direction or distance, we hired an auto-rickshaw for Rs.30/- and
reached the gates within five minutes.
There are cycle rickshaws that ply within the precincts of the National
Park and one can either hire them right
at the main gate, wherefrom you have to buy tickets @ Rs.50/- per head for
adults and @ Rs.20/- per head for students and free for kids under 5
years. The cycle rickshaws charge @
Rs.100/- per hour and the guide @ Rs.150/- per hour without telescope and @
Rs.250/- per hour for those with telescope.
There are two gates to the Park, one just at the entry and one at the
core area of the park, one can drive through till the second gate and hire
rickshaws from there as well. Vehicles are only permitted up to Shanti
Kutir inside the Park. The Electra Van of the Forest Department in the
Sanctuary can be engaged, although the best way to explore the Park is on foot,
bicycle or cycle rickshaws which are available on hire. Since we had not brought our vehicle
we had to hire three rickshaws and a guide for the visit, which cost me about
Rs.1400/- (Rs.900/- for rickshaws for three hours and the guide Rs.500/-). It is not essential to hire a guide, as
the rickshaw pullers are equally apt at identifying the birds and also showing
them to you for some little extra incentive, the guides are a professional lot
and despite seeking hefty payments will not show you anything out of the
ordinary. Migratory waterfowls from all over the world and even the famed
Siberian Cranes, that were once the pride of Keoladeo, last visited the park in
2002, was a major attraction. The most noticeable waterfowls coming to the Park
are the bar- headed and grey lag geese. The ducks spotted that can be spotted here
are the northern pintail, common teal, ruddy shelduck, mallard, widgeon,
shoveler, common shelduck, red crested pochard, gadwall etc. Predatory birds
like the imperial eagle, steppe and tawny eagle, spotted eagle, marsh harrier
and laggar falcon are attracted towards the Park, completing the avian food
chain of the ecosystem. Some of them, like the short – toed eagle lesser
spotted eagle and shikra, are the residents of the Park. Saras cranes, the
tallest flight birds, nest in exposed and open areas, but had failed to make it
to the park this year. About 11 sq. Kms
of the Park out of its total area of 28 sq. Kms. is covered by water &
marshes. The remaining portion
comprising of dry bushland & Acacia trees is rich in birds like the
kingfisher, red-vented and white-cheeked bulbuls, babblers, quails, partridges,
sunbirds, sparrows, parakeets and orioles, which live in bushes and burrows. In
addition to these birds, animals like the black buck, sambar (largest Indian
antelope), spotted deer, nilgais and wild hogs can be spotted here. Likewise, Pythons
and Monitor lizards can also be observed, at some places, lazing in the sun.

Way to the Jawahar Burj

A pillar atop the Jawahar Burj

Closeup of the pillar atop Jwahar Burj

Panoramic view of Bharatpur from atop Jwahar Burj

Statute of Maharaja Surajmal astride his horse in Bharatpur

Historically speaking the Keoladeo
National Park was intitally construed as a dam that was built by Maharaja Suraj
Mal in 1750’s known as Anjan Bund. Due
to abundance of water, it started attracting many hervivores, especially Deers
of many kind and in year 1850 onwards, this was converted as the Deer Hunting
site by the MaharajasDue to abundance of water and being protected site, the
place had started attracting birds in huge numbers and Prince Harbanji of Morvi
State of present day Gujrat, who had been appointed as Administrator of
Bharatpur converted this place into a Duck shooting reserve in 1899 and after
flooding & creation of channels for distribution of water in 1901 onwards,
the reserve was inaugurated in 1902 by Lord Curzon. The Keoladeo Ghana National Park was formally
notified as a Bird Sanctuary in 1956 and remained a personal game reserve of
the Maharaja of Bharatpur till 1963.
Thereafter, in 1967 the area was declared as a reserve forest and
upgraded as a National Park in 1981 and declared a World Heritage site in 1985.

The famed Ganga temple of Bharatpur

Panoramic view of the Ganga temple in Bharatpur

The famed Laxman temple (presiding deity of scions of Bharatpur) in Bharatpur

Another view of Laxman temple of Bharatpur

We
returned back to the hotel and after having taken some tea & snacks settled
to watch television as there is nothing else to do in this remote part. We then had dinner by ordering dishes
separately – A-la-carte, but found the preparation as atrocious as in the
afternoon. The remaining days that we
stayed there we only ordered ‘Dal’ (a kind of lentil soup) and ‘Paranthas’
(fried bread) and sought scrambled eggs from outside the Hotel to partake our
dinner. We tucked ourselves into the bed
early so as to get up early in the morning for visiting the Bird Sanctuary. But the next day turned out to be equally bad
with an intense cover of fog enveloping the entire area and after waiting upto
10.00 A.M. we decided to explore the township.
As the roads inside the township are rather narrow, we decided to explore
the township in a local auto-rickshaw that charged us Rs.200/- for the
trip. The first prominent destination
inside the township is the famed Lohagarh Fort, which true to its name that literally means
‘built of Iron’, stood solidly against many attacks by the British, frustrating
them to no end. It faced the British onslaught four times and after a long
siege they had to withdraw, but finally it was captured by Lord Lake for
the British. This fort is very
different from the other forts in the State of Rajasthan. There is no architectural
style associated with this fort, but it radiates an aura of strength and
magnificence. The fort is surrounded by a moat, which was filled with water to
ward off the enemy attacks. Sandy battlements strengthened the sandy ramparts,
thus the enemy guns proved of no avail. It has many gateways known as burjs and also
houses many buildings inside its precincts.

A Fox inside the Bharatpur Sanctuary

Rose ringed Parakeets inside Bharatpur Sanctuary

A Cormorant with its meal in Bharatpur Sanctuary

Migratory birds flying across Bharatpur Sanctuary

A large water monitor basking in the Sun in Bharatpur Sanctuary

However,
the most outstanding piece of architecture is the Bharatpur Palace. It is a fusion of Mughal and Rajput styles of
architecture and it appears that the Rajas of Bharatpur were in awe of the
Mughals and copied them in many aspects.
The palace was built in various phases by different Maharajas,
having being initally established by Raja Suraj Mal. The magnificent apartments
are richly decorated with patterned floor tiles having exquisite and intricate
designs. Kamra Khas, within the fort, has been converted into a museum
displaying a rich collection of antiquities, exquisite sculptures and some
ancient inscriptions alongwith a variety of arms & ammunation and
muskets. The museum occupies the main
central wing displaying collections dating back to the 2nd century
AD which demonstrates the art and skill of the region. However, photography is restricted inside the
museum precincts. Another interesting
part of the Palace architecture is the building housing the ‘Hamams’ or bathing
place, which too constitues of intricately laid down floorings and exquisite
roofs etc., a direct influence of the Mughals.
Behind this palace lies the Jwahar Burj that houses two huge metal
pillars with inscriptions on them.

As the Sun sets across the Bharatpur Sanctuary

In
the market area is the Ganga Temple that was constructed by Maharaja Balwant Singh, who had started
the construction of this big temple way back in 1845. The construction was
carried out by a unique method, where all persons employed in the service of
the state, were asked to donate one month’s salary of their service or any
raise in pay towards the shrine. The temple is a beautiful piece of typical
Rajput architecture. The other main
temple of the township is the Laxaman temple, this temple is also famous for
beautiful stone work with elaborate carvings from doorways to ceilings,
pillars, walls and arches. The temple is dedicated to Laxman, brother of Lord
Rama. After having visited the temple,
we again headed back to the Bird Sanctuary, this time around we drove upto the
Shanti Kutir and walked on our own exploring ‘hither & thither’, till we
were famished and had reached the end of the road, where we consumed some
‘Samosas’ (fried snacks) and Cold drinks in the Canteen run by the Sanctuary
administration near the ancient Shiva temple.
But my daughter & wife were totally worn out and therefore, we had
to seek assistance of Rickshaws on our way back and by the time we were moving
out of the complex, the sun was setting and created a beautiful aura all around
and thus, we bid adeiu to Keoladeo National Park.